Ways of ThinkingMature

Nate continued to search for channels on the police radio, all of them coming up with nothing but empty static. The three had parked the car at the top of a hill overlooking the town, not too far from a public park.

"Still nothing?" asked James.

"Not a goddamn thing," said Nate.

"Fuck." James snorted and spat on the ground. "Well, best we can do is keep scanning the channels, and if nothing comes up, we leave town and look for a place to go - by ourselves."

"And why haven't we done that already?" asked Nate.

"We need to try and figure out where we can go that's safe," James replied.

"I'll be surprised if they haven't quarantined the whole damn state."

"Probably the best thing to do, to be honest."

"None of this makes any goddamn sense," said Nate. "Where the hell would a virus like this even come from? And how the hell did it spread so quickly?"

"Overwhelming odds, like in the movies." said James. "Get enough people infected and it could spread through the town easily enough, not alot of gun owners here, from what I understand, save ourselves. But as to where it originated... that certainly is an interesting question."

"One that we'd better get a fucking answer to when this is over," said Nate.

"Maybe, maybe not," said James, looking out at the horizon. "Either way, tough to say if things will ever be normal here again."

Nate fell silent and went back to scanning the radio. James' eyes drifted toward the edge of the hill, where Robbie stood, alone. He walked over to him and stood next to him, looking out at the town. From this distance, it looked fairly normal, save the few columns of smoke arising from the occasional burning building.

"The place is in ruins, man..." said Robbie. "All those people... dead or one of the walking dead."

"I know, pretty heavy shit," said James with a sigh. "But we'll get through this."

"How?" asked Robbie. "Far as we know, almost no one in town still alive has any chance or hope of survival."

"We're not them," said James. "We're prepared, we have supplies, we have a fighting chance."

"How do you deal with it?" Robbie asked, a solumn look on his face. "Knowing how many people are dead?"

"I focus on other things," said James. "Like survival."

"But -"

"Look... Just try and put it out of your mind, okay? Or else you'll go mad with grief. Now isn't the time for that." Robbie was silent for a moment.

"You're right," he said.

"Glad you think so," said James, patting him on the shoulder. "Long as we keep a cool head, we'll be fine." The two stood for a few minutes, looking out at the town.

"You ever worry about Amy?" asked Robbie.

"Not really," said James. "She's far away from all of this, safe and sound... assuming the virus is still within the state, or country. Good thing she went on vacation when she did."

"Still, she'll definitely hear about this on the news, and then she'll be worried about you." James said nothing, as if choosing his words carefully.

"Let's put it this way," said James. "For once, I'm glad she's not here with me. The best thing for her is to stay right where she is, where she can be safe. All I have to worry about are three things; you, me, and him." James gestured toward Nate.

"You really think we'll get through this okay?" asked Robbie.

"Nothing is certain right now," said James. "Or ever is, for that matter. But we do have a chance, and we can't afford to waste it."

"Fuck!" they heard Nate yell, turning towards him. "Guys, I might have something!" James and Robbie rushed over. Nate had still been scanning the airwaves, and a faint voice could be heard through the static.

"All citizens.... report to..... military base.... for evacuation.... biohazard.... true scope of this threat is unknown...." The voice cut out.

"Damn!" said Nate, trying to adjust the signal.

"It mentioned a military base," said Robbie. "Isn't there a base in the next town over?"

"Yeah, forty miles or so from here," said James. "Would probably take us around forty-five minutes to get there."

"A military base?!" Nate exclaimed. "Are you crazy?"

"You have a better idea?" asked Robbie. "Besides, they're telling people to go there for evacuation."

"The least we can do is check it out," said James. "But we won't spare any caution. We treat it the same way we treated the rest of the town, don't rush into anything, and be on our toes at all times." The slight look of anger on Nate's face didn't fade.

"Fine, we'll go," he said, entering the car. James and Robbie followed suit, and together the three drove away from the park, toward what they hoped would be their rescue.

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